Reducing congestion in wireless communication networks

ABSTRACT

In a method for controlling network congestion, a parameter to bar access from specific user equipment is adjusted. The adjusted parameter in a specific system information block which is different from a System Information Block Type 2  is transmitted. The method may be performed by a base station.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to wireless communications andwireless communications-related technology. More specifically, thepresent invention relates to reducing congestion in wirelesscommunication networks.

BACKGROUND

Wireless communication devices have become smaller and more powerful inorder to meet consumer needs and to improve portability and convenience.Consumers have become dependent upon wireless communication devices andhave come to expect reliable service, expanded areas of coverage, andincreased functionality. A wireless communication system may providecommunication for a number of cells, each of which may be serviced by abase station. A base station may be a fixed station that communicateswith mobile stations.

As wireless communication devices have become more advanced, thepotential uses of wireless communication devices have also increased.One such advancement is the introduction of machine-to-machine (M2M)devices. These devices may provide little or no human interface.Instead, these devices may provide a wireless link to a base station.The wireless link may be provided to an application that uses thewireless link to send information to and receive information from thebase station.

Because these devices do not merely provide an interface for humaninteraction, many more of these devices may rely on a single basestation. With an increase in the number of wireless devicescommunicating with a base station, there is potential for the basestation to be overloaded. Benefits may be realized by preventing thebase station from becoming overloaded.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a wireless communication system;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an Open System Interconnection(OSI) model;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the transmission of a SystemInformation (SI) message and a paging message from a base station to auser equipment (UE);

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating various components of overloadcontrol information;

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of a method for reducing congestion;

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a method for reducing congestion usingnotification sent via a paging message;

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a method for reducing congestion without apaging message;

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of a method for reducing congestion by sendingoverload control information in a paging message;

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram of another method for reducing congestion;

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of a method for applying random access channel(RACH) barring;

FIG. 11 illustrates various components that may be utilized in a basestation; and

FIG. 12 illustrates various components that may be utilized in a userequipment (UE).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A method for controlling network congestion is described. A potentialoverload of the network is detected. An access class for which to changeoverload control information is selected. The overload controlinformation for the selected access class is adjusted. The adjustedoverload control information is transmitted.

The method may be performed by a base station. The selected access classmay pertain to user equipments (UEs) that have the selected accessclass. The user equipments (UEs) may include machine type communication(MTC) devices and wireless communication devices. The overload controlinformation for the selected access class may be adjusted in a systeminformation message. Transmitting the adjusted overload controlinformation may include broadcasting the system information messagebefore a next modification period boundary.

A paging message with an overload control information changenotification may be sent to the selected access class. The overloadcontrol information for the selected access class may be adjusted in apaging message. Transmitting the adjusted overload control informationmay include sending the paging message. The overload control informationmay include access class barring (ACB) information and initial back off(IBO) information.

An apparatus configured for controlling network congestion is alsodescribed. The apparatus includes a processor, memory in electroniccommunication with the processor and instructions stored in the memory.The instructions are executable by the processor to detect a potentialoverload of the network. The instructions are also executable by theprocessor to select an access class for which to change overload controlinformation. The instructions are further executable by the processor toadjust the overload control information for the selected access class.The instructions are also executable by the processor to transmit theadjusted overload control information.

A method for controlling network congestion is described. The method isperformed by a user equipment (UE). Up-to-date overload controlinformation is obtained. Barring information is obtained from theup-to-date overload control information. The barring information is usedto determine whether access to the network is barred.

The barring information may include access class barring information.The access class barring information may include an access class barringindicator. The user equipment (UE) may operate in idle mode. Using thebarring information to determine whether access to the network is barredmay include determining whether a bit in the access class barringindicator that corresponds to an access class of the UE is set to zero.

The bit in the access class barring indicator that corresponds to anaccess class of the UE may be set to zero. The user equipment (UE) mayconsider access to the network as not barred. An initial back off valuemay be obtained from the up-to-date overload control information. Aninitial back off based on the initial back off value may be applied.

The access class barring information may also include an access classbarring factor. The bit in the access class barring indicator thatcorresponds to an access class of the UE may not be set to zero. A firstrandom number may be drawn. The first random number may be compared to avalue indicated by the access class barring factor.

The first random number may be lower than the value indicated by theaccess class barring factor. The user equipment (UE) may consider accessto the network as not barred. An initial back off value may be obtainedfrom the up-to-date overload control information. An initial back offbased on the initial back off value may be applied.

The access barring information may also include an access class barringtime. The first random number may not be lower than the value indicatedby the access class barring factor. A second random number may be drawn.The user equipment (UE) may wait for a time period corresponding to thesecond random number and the access class barring time before retryingto access the network.

The initial back off may be applied to a radio resource control (RRC)layer prior to an RRC connection establishment. The initial back off mayalso be applied in the media access control (MAC) layer. The MAC layermay decide a time to wait before initiating a random access procedure.Applying an initial back off may include delaying for a time periodcorresponding to the initial back off value before attempting to attachto the network.

The barring information may include random access channel (RACH) barringinformation that includes an RACH barring factor and an RACH barringtime. A first random number may be drawn. It may be determined thataccess to the network is barred by comparing the first random number toan RACH barring factor. Access to the network may be barred if the firstrandom number is not lower than the RACH barring factor. A second randomnumber may be drawn. The method may include delaying for a time periodcorresponding to the second random number and the RACH barring timebefore redrawing the first random number.

It may be determined that access to the network is not barred bycomparing the first random number to the RACH barring factor. Access tothe network may not be barred if the first random number is lower thanthe RACH barring factor. Random access procedures may then continue.

The UE may be a machine type communication (MTC) device or a wirelesscommunication device. The UE may have an access class selected by a basestation for which to change overload control information. The UE may berequired to read the overload control information from a systeminformation message prior to attempting to attach to the network. The UEmay obtain the up-to-date overload control information by receiving achange notification via a paging message indicating a change in theoverload control information in a system information message. The UE mayalso obtain the overload control information via a paging message.

An apparatus configured for controlling network congestion is alsodescribed. The apparatus includes a processor, memory in electroniccommunication with the processor and instructions stored in the memory.The instructions are executable to obtain up-to-date overload controlinformation. The instructions are also executable to obtain barringinformation from the up-to-date overload control information. Theinstructions are further executable to use the barring information todetermine whether access to the network is barred.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a wireless communication system100. The wireless communication system 100 may include a core network(CN) 106, a base station 102, a first machine type communication (MTC)device 104 a communicating with a first machine 120 a, a second machinetype communication (MTC) device 104 b communicating with a secondmachine 120 b and a wireless communication device 118. A base station102 may be in wireless communication with one or more machine typecommunication (MTC) devices 104 and one or more wireless communicationdevices 118.

A base station 102 may be referred to as an access point, a Node B, aneNodeB, or some other terminology. The term “base station” is usedherein. The base station 102 and its coverage area may be referred to asa radio access network (RAN) 108. A wireless communication device 118may be referred to as a mobile station, a subscriber station, an accessterminal, a remote station, a user terminal, a terminal, a handset, asubscriber unit or some other terminology. The term “wirelesscommunication device” is used herein.

A wireless communication device 118 may be a cellular phone, a smartphone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem,etc. A wireless communication device 118 may transmit data to the basestation 102 over a radio frequency (RF) communication channel. Likewise,the base station 102 may transmit data to the wireless communicationdevice over a radio frequency (RF) communication channel.

A machine type communication (MTC) device 104 may communicate with zero,one or multiple base stations 102 over a radio frequency (RF)communication channel. In one configuration, the machine typecommunication (MTC) device 104 may communicate with the base station 102on the downlink and/or uplink at any given moment. The downlink refersto the communication link from a base station 102 to a wireless devicesuch as a wireless communication device 118 or a machine typecommunication (MTC) device 104. The uplink refers to the communicationlink from a wireless device such as a wireless communication device 118or a machine type communication (MTC) device 104 to a base station 102.The communication link may be established using a single-input andsingle-output (SISO), multiple-input and single-output (MISO) or amultiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) system. A MIMO system mayinclude both a transmitter and a receiver equipped with multipletransmit and receive antennas.

The Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is a collaborationbetween groups of telecommunications associations to make globallyapplicable mobile phone system specifications. Long Term Evolution (LTE)is the project name of a high performance air interface for cellularmobile telephony. Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) is a mobilecommunication standard that works as an enhancement to the LTE airinterface. In 3GPP LTE-A Release 10, specifications includefunctionality that enables the use of machine type communication (MTC)devices 104.

A machine type communication (MTC) device 104 is similar to a wirelesscommunication device 118, except the primary function does not provide auser interface. A machine type communication (MTC) device 104 may usethe physical (PHY) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer, radio linkcontrol (RLC) layer, the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) and theRadio Resource Control (RRC) layer to establish a communication linkwith a base station 102 and the core network (CN) 106. However, amachine type communication (MTC) device 104 may not provide a humaninterface. Instead, a machine type communication (MTC) device 104 mayoperate as a network access point between machines 120 (i.e., betweendata acquisition/data aggregation devices and a machine typecommunication (MTC) server 110).

A machine type communication (MTC) server 110 may be a device that usesthe core network (CN) 106 to facilitate a connection with a machine typecommunication (MTC) application on a machine type communication (MTC)device 104. Examples of machine type communication (MTC) devices 104include surveillance equipment, utility measurement devices, fleetmanagement devices and production chain monitoring devices. Machine typecommunication (MTC) devices 104 and wireless communication devices 118may be collectively referred to as user equipment (UE). Thus, a machinetype communication (MTC) device 104 is a specific type of user equipment(UE).

A machine type communication (MTC) device 104 may be categorizedaccording to the requirements of the machine type communication (MTC)device 104. The first machine type communication (MTC) device 104 a maybe categorized as time tolerant because it is not necessary for thefirst machine type communication (MTC) device 104 a to immediatelyreport its data to the machine type communication (MTC) server 110. Thesecond machine type communication (MTC) device 104 b may be categorizedas time intolerant because it is highly desirable to immediately reportthe data collected by the second machine type communication (MTC) device104 b to the machine type communication (MTC) server 110.

A machine type communication (MTC) device 104 may be identified as aspecific user equipment (UE) (i.e., a user equipment (UE) that has aspecific access class). Time tolerant machine type communication (MTC)devices 104 a and time intolerant machine type communication (MTC)devices 104 b may each be identified as specific user equipment (UE).

The method by which the network partitions security, health andemergency class user equipment (UE) from consumer class user equipment(UE) is via an access class hierarchy. Each machine type communication(MTC) device 104 and each wireless communication device 118 may bepreconfigured with one or more access class values 116 a-c (i.e., avalue from 1 to n). Before a user equipment (UE) can access the system,the user equipment (UE) must verify whether an access class value 116 onthe user equipment (UE) is barred from access to the cell. In this way,the base station 102 may control the access of user equipment (UE) tothe cell.

A base station 102 may be configured to establish communication linkswith multiple wireless communication devices 118 and/or multiple machinetype communication (MTC) devices 104. Because of the limitedcommunication requirements for machine type communication (MTC) devices104, many more machine type communication (MTC) devices 104 may beinfluenced by a base station 102 than wireless communication devices 118influenced by the base station 102. It is predicted that ten times asmany machine type communication (MTC) devices 104 as wirelesscommunication devices 118 may be under the influence of a base station102.

An increase in the number of user equipment (UE) communicating with abase station 102 increases the possibility for congestion. The basestation 102 may attempt to mitigate the congestion using an overloadprevention module 112. The overload prevention module 112 may limitnetwork access for certain access class values 116. For example, theoverload prevention module 112 may determine an access class 114 foradjustment. The access class 114 may correspond to a group of userequipment (UE) that have the potential to cause congestion for the basestation 102 and/or have the potential to reduce congestion via networkaccess adjustments. The base station 102 may then adjust network accessparameters for the specific access class 114 to reduce congestion.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an Open System Interconnection(OSI) model. This model is a way of subdividing a system in smallerparts (called layers) from the point of view of communications. A layeris a collection of conceptually similar functions that provides servicesto the layer above it and receives services from the layer below it.Each layer may provide services to the layer above and request servicesfrom the layer below. The Open System Interconnection (OSI) model mayfacilitate communications between a core network (CN) 206, a basestation 202 user equipment (UE) 254. The base station 202 of FIG. 2 maybe one configuration of the base station 102 of FIG. 1. The userequipment (UE) 254 of FIG. 2 may be one configuration of the machinetype communication (MTC) devices 104 or the wireless communicationdevice 118 of FIG. 1. The core network (CN) 206 of FIG. 2 may be oneconfiguration of the core network (CN) 106 of FIG. 1.

In the Open System Interconnection (OSI) model, the layers may bedivided into two groups: an access stratum (AS) 226 and a non-accessstratum (NAS) 224. Access stratum (AS) 226 and non-access stratum (NAS)224 are 3GPP terms. The access stratum (AS) 226 includes the layers ofthe Open System Interconnection (OSI) model used to setup, maintain andterminate an LTE data connection between a user equipment (UE) 254 and abase station 202. In the 3GPP LTE and LTE-A specifications, the physical(PHY) layer 230, media access control (MAC) layer 232, radio linkcontrol (RLC) layer 234, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer236 and the radio resource control (RRC) layer 238 are all part of theaccess stratum (AS) 226. An LTE system may use the radio resourcecontrol (RRC) layer 238 to handle the transport of dedicated informationbetween a user equipment (UE) 254 and a base station 202 control plane.

The non-access stratum (NAS) 224 includes those layers used to servicemachine type communication (MTC) applications 218 on the user equipment(UE) 254 (if the user equipment (UE) 254 is a machine type communication(MTC) device 104). In the LTE system, the Evolved Packet System (EPS)Mobility Management (EMM) protocol provides procedures for the controlof mobility when wireless devices (such as a wireless communicationdevice 118 or a machine type communication (MTC) device 104) are usingthe Evolved UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System)Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN). The EMM protocol alsoprovides control of security for the non-access stratum (NAS). Theprocedures are used by the protocols for mobility management and sessionmanagement between a wireless device and a Mobility Management Entity(MME) in the Evolved Packet System (EPS). These protocols belong to thenon-access stratum (NAS) 224. An application layer is a layer that issupported by the non-access stratum (NAS) 224. The access stratum (AS)226 provides radio access network (RAN) 108 resource to the non-accessstratum (NAS) 224. Applications 218 that are running on a machine typecommunication (MTC) device 104 are considered part of the non-accessstratum (NAS) 224.

As discussed above, 3GPP LTE-A Release 10 specifications includefunctionality that enables the use of machine type communication (MTC)devices 104. A machine type communication (MTC) device 104 is similar toa wireless communication device 118 in that it uses the access stratum(AS) 226 layers to establish a communication link with the base station202. But a machine type communication (MTC) device 104 differs from awireless communication device 118 because the machine type communication(MTC) device 104 does not provide the standard human interface of atypical handset. Instead, the purpose of a machine type communication(MTC) device 104 is to operate as a radio access network (RAN) 108access point between machines 120 (i.e., between data acquisition/dataaggregation devices and the machine type communication (MTC) server110). The machine type communication (MTC) device 104 may still use thenon-access stratum (NAS) 224 to support the applications 218 that run onthe machine type communication (MTC) device 104 and require networkresources.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the transmission of a SystemInformation (SI) message 340 and a paging message 348 from a basestation 302 to a user equipment (UE 354). The base station 302 of FIG. 3may be one configuration of the base station 102 of FIG. 1. The userequipment (UE) 354 of FIG. 3 may be one configuration of the userequipment (UE) 254 of FIG. 2. The base station 302 may broadcast adownlink radio frame that includes the system information message 340.The wireless resources 352 used to send messages from the base station302 to the user equipment (UE) 354 may be broadcast resources (i.e.,using the broadcast control channel (BCH) transport channel) ordedicated resources (i.e., using the downlink shared channel (DL-SCH)transport channel).

In LTE-A, the base station 302 broadcasts information necessary for auser equipment (UE) 354 (such as a wireless communication device 118 ora machine type communication (MTC) device 104) to establish acommunication link with the network via System Information (SI) messages340. System information is divided into the master information block(MIB) 344 and a number of system information blocks (e.g., SIB1 . . .SIB12) 346. A first system information block 346 may be referred to asSystemInformationBlockType1 (SIB1) and may include schedulinginformation in SchedulingInfoList that indicates where emergencyinformation such as Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System(ETWS)/Commercial Mobile Alert System (CMAS) data SIB messages arelocated and a system information change indicator systemInfoValueTagthat indicates a change in the System Information (SI) message 340 hasoccurred. A second system information block 346 may be referred to asSystemInformationBlockType2 (SIB2) and may include a hierarchicalpartitioning of wireless communication devices 118 and machine typecommunication (MTC) devices 104 in ac-BarringInfo.

Another system information block may be referred to asSystemInformationBlockType10/11 (SIB10 and SIB11) and may include theEarthquake and Tsunami Warning System (ETWS) message data. Yet anothersystem information block may be referred to asSystemInformationBlockType12 and may include the Commercial Mobile AlertSystem (CMAS) message data. SystemInformationBLockType10/11 andSystemInformationBlockType12 may each include emergency information 330.The system information (SI) message 340 may also include radio accessnetwork (RAN) information 342.

A base station 302 may broadcast a paging message 348 to inform userequipments (UEs) 354 of a system information change. A paging message348 may be broadcast occasionally user equipment's (UE) 354 pagingoccasion. The paging occasion may be determined by the InternationalMobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) of a user equipment (UE) 354 andsystem configuration settings.

The paging message 348 may include a system information change indicator350. The system information change indicator 350 may be the data fieldsystemInfoModification, which when set indicates that System Information(SI) data is scheduled to change at the next Modification Periodboundary. A Modification Period boundary limits when changes to theSystem Information (SI) data are allowed. Change of the SystemInformation (SI) data only occurs at specific radio frames. The SystemInformation (SI) data may be transmitted a number of times with the samecontent within a modification period, as defined by its scheduling. WhensystemInfoModification is set during “modification period N” then thechange will not occur until “modification period N+1.” The pagingmessage may also include an etws-cmas-lndication, which, when setindicates that Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System (ETWS)/CommercialMobile Alert System (CMAS) data is being broadcast.

To mitigate congestion when a large number of user equipments (UEs) 354are attempting to attach to the network at nearly the same time, thebase station 302 may quickly change overload control information 356 forsome or all of the user equipments (UEs) 354. In one configuration, thebase station 302 may only change overload information 356 for all of theuser equipments (UEs) 354 that have the specific access class 114.Changes in overload control information 356 may reduce the congestion ofa base station 302 by forcing some of the user equipments (UEs) 354attempting to attach to the network to delay before reattempting accessto the network. Overload control information 356 is discussed inadditional detail below in relation to FIG. 4.

To mitigate congestion, a base station 302 may be required to quicklychange overload control information 356 for a specific access class 114before the next modification period. This is because the preciseoverload control may be needed for a specific situation (e.g.,introducing machine type communication (MTC) devices 104). In Rel-8, thesystem information (SI) message 340 may be transmitted a number of timeswith the same content within a modification period, as defined by itsscheduling.

The modification period boundaries are defined by system frame number(SFN) for which SFN mod m=0, where m is the number of radio frames inthe modification period. The modification period is configured by thesystem information (SI) message 340.

When the network changes some or all of the system information (SI) in asystem information (SI) message 340, the base station 302 first notifiesthe user equipments (UEs) 354 about this change. This may be donethroughout a modification period. In the next modification period, thenetwork may transmit the updated system information (SI). Upon receivingthe system information change indicator 350 in a paging message 348, theuser equipment (UE) 354 may acquire the new system information (SI) viathe system information (SI) message 340 from the start of the nextmodification period. The paging message 348 is used to inform userequipments (UEs) 354 in RRC_IDLE and user equipments (UEs) inRRC_CONNECTED about a system information change.

However, a base station 302 may need to change system information (SI)prior to the next modification period to prevent congestion.Specifically, the base station 302 may need to update overload controlinformation 356 prior to the next modification period. In oneconfiguration, the base station 302 may update the overload controlinformation 356 a in the system information (SI) message 340 during amodification period.

The base station 302 may include an overload control information changenotification 358 in the paging message 348 when a change is made to theoverload control information 356 a in the system information (SI)message 340. The overload control information change notification 358may indicate a change in overload control information 356 a for thoseuser equipments (UEs) 354 that have the specific access class 114. Ifthose user equipments (UEs) 354 receive the paging message 348 includingthe overload control information change notification 358, the userequipments (UEs) 354 may start receiving the updated overload controlinformation 356 a. In this way, only the user equipments (UEs) 354 thathave the specific access class 114 may search for the updated overloadcontrol information 356 a while user equipments (UEs) 354 with unrelatedaccess classes are not influenced by the change to system informationand the overload control information change notification 358.

In another configuration, the base station 302 may include the updatedoverload control information 356 b in the paging message 348. Theupdated overload control information 356 b may be directed to a specificaccess class 114 so that only the user equipments (UEs) 354 that havethe specific access class 114 read the updated overload controlinformation 356 b.

In yet another configuration, to reduce the load of a paging message348, a change in System Information (SI) without a paging notificationcan be performed. User equipments (UEs) 534 that have the specificaccess class 114 may be always required to monitor and acquire overloadcontrol information 356 a for the specific access class 114 whenaccessing the cell. User equipments (UEs) 354 that do not have thespecific access class 114 (these user equipments (UEs) 354 may bereferred to as normal user equipments (UEs) 354), may not be required toacquire system information (SI) when accessing the cell. In other words,a user equipment (UE) 354 acquires specific system information (SI)including overload control information 356 during a radio resourcecontrol (RRC) connection establishment if either a) the user equipment(UE) 354 is required to do so or b) the user equipment (UE) 354 has thespecific access class 114. Otherwise, the user equipment (UE) 354 doesnot acquire system information (SI) during the radio resource control(RRC) connection establishment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating various components of overloadcontrol information 456. The overload control information 456 of FIG. 4may be one configuration of the overload control information 356 of FIG.3. The overload control information 456 may be transmitted from a basestation 302 to a user equipment (UE) 354. As discussed above in relationto FIG. 3, the overload control information 456 may be sent to a userequipment (UE) 354 in a system information (SI) message 340 or in apaging message 348.

To mitigate congestion when a large number of user equipments (UEs) 354are attempting to attach to the network at nearly the same time, a basestation 302 may use Access Class Barring (ACB) and Back Off (BO). TheAccess Class Barring (ACB) mechanism controls access to the network by auser equipment (UE) 354. If the Access Class Barring (ACB) mechanismdoes not allow a user equipment (UE) 354 access to the network, the userequipment (UE) 354 may be prevented from another access attempt for someconfigurable period of time. After the configurable period of time, theuser equipment (UE) 354 may again use the Access Class Barring (ACB)mechanism to request access to the network. The Access Class Barring(ACB) mechanism has the capability to prevent a user equipment (UE) 354from ever gaining access to the network. Thus, the Access Class Barring(ACB) mechanism may reduce the number of accesses to the network.

In the Rel-8/9 specification, Access Class Barring (ACB) information maybe provided by SIB2. However, SIB2 has a very limited payload capacity.Thus, Access Class Barring (ACB) information and initial back offinformation may be added to other system information blocks (SIBS)besides SIB2. In one configuration, a new system information block SIBxmay be used.

Access Class Barring (ACB) may use access class barring information 460.In the Rel-8/9 specification, access class barring information 460 maybe provided by SIB2. The access class barring information 460 may applyto each access class or to a group of access classes. Access ClassBarring (ACB) may be applied to the specific user equipments (UEs) 354only (i.e., those user equipments (UEs) 354 that have the specificaccess class 114). SIB2 has a very limited payload capacity. Thus,access class barring information 460 and initial back off (IBO)information 466 may be added to other system information blocks (SIBs)besides SIB2. In one configuration, a new system information block SIBxmay be used.

The access class barring information 460 may include an access classbarring indicator 461 ac-BarringForSpecialAC, an access class barringfactor 462 ac-BarringFactor and an access class barring time 464ac-BarringTime. In the Rel-8/9 specification, the access class barringfactor 462 and the access class barring time 464 are the same among allaccess classes. However, with the introduction of machine typecommunication (MTC) devices 104, the characteristics for each accessclass may differ significantly. It is therefore needed to provide theaccess class barring factor 462 and the access class barring time 464for a specific access class. A user equipment (UE) 354 may select theaccess class barring factor 462 and the access class barring time 464based on its own access class.

The access class barring indicator 461 ac-BarringForSpecialAC is a bitstrings as a bitmap for each access class, which represent whetheraccess to the cell is barred for each access class. The access classbarring factor 462 may represent the possibility that a user equipment(UE) 354 can obtain access rights to the network. A user equipment (UE)354 may ensure its own access class and the access class barring (ACB)information 460 for its access class. The user equipment (UE) 354 maydraw a random number “rand” uniformly distributed in the range 0<=rand<1and if rand is lower than the value indicated by the access classbarring factor 462, the user equipment (UE) 354 considers access to thecell as not barred. If rand is not lower than the value indicated by theaccess class barring factor 462, the user equipment (UE) 354 considersaccess to the cell as barred. The user equipment (UE) 354 may then use arandom number along with the access class barring time 464 to determinethe amount of time to wait before the next access attempt.

Although an Access Class Barring (ACB) mechanism can effectivelymitigate congestion, such a mechanism also causes a latency problem ifthe user equipment (UE) 354 is not using the most up-to-date accessclass barring information 460. If the event that Access Class Barring(ACB) mechanism allows a user equipment (UE) 354 access to the networkis triggered, with the introduction of machine type communication (MTC)devices 104, a significant number of machine type communication (MTC)devices 104 may respond to the same trigger event at the same time andattempt to attach to the network. Especially, this may occur when theoverload control information 356 has changed to allow access to thecell, which may cause a sudden increase in congestion.

A back off mechanism may be used to mitigate the congestion to someextent by delaying a user equipment (UE) 354 access attempt with thehope that there will be less congestion in the future. However, a backoff mechanism cannot alter the fundamental problem of too many userequipments (UEs) 354 attempting to attach to the network. The mediaaccess control (MAC) layer 232 may provide a back off parameter forreattempt of the random access channel (RACH) process. An initial backoff (IBO) mechanism may be used for the first attempt of the randomaccess channel (RACH) process.

The overload control information 456 may include initial back off (IBO)information 466. The initial back off (IBO) information 466 may includean initial back off value 467. The initial back off value 467 may bestatic (i.e., the initial back off value 467 was provisioned into theuser equipment (UE) 354 at the time of manufacture). The initial backoff value 467 may also be dynamic (i.e., the initial back off value 467is signaled to the user equipment (UE) 354 via a dedicated channel(i.e., a radio resource control (RRC) message)). If the initial back offvalue 467 is dynamic, the initial back off value 467 may be unique tothe user equipment (UE) 354. The initial back off value 467 may also besignaled via a broadcast channel (i.e., system information block (SIB)data); in this case the initial back off value 467 is the same for alluser equipments (UEs) 354. The initial back off value 467 may further besignaled via the paging channel (i.e., via a paging message 348); inthis case the initial back off value 467 is the same for one group ofuser equipments (UEs) 354 but different from that of another group ofuser equipments (UEs) 354.

The initial back off (IBO) information 466 may be used by the userequipment (UE) 354 after the Access Class Barring (ACB) mechanism hasdetermined that the user equipment (UE) 354 is allowed access to thenetwork. Specific user equipments (UEs) 354 may be required to delay fora back off time after determining that access to the cell is not barredbefore initiating a message transmission with the cell. The initial backoff (IBO) information 466 is discussed in further detail below inrelation to FIG. 9.

The initial back off value 467 signaled to the user equipment (UE) 354may be a representation of the current load experienced by the network.For example, if the current load is low, then the initial back off value467 may indicate that the user equipment (UE) 354 can use the nextopportunity to attempt to access the network. If the current load ishigh, then the initial back off value 467 may indicate that the userequipment (UE) 354 must wait for some time before physical random accesschannel (PRACH) resources can be used.

The initial back off value 467 can be controlled and configured by thebase station 102 because the base station 102 has knowledge of thecurrent network congestion. Also, the base station 102 knows thatcongestion will occur after providing system information block (SIB) 346data that includes overload control information 456. Thus, the initialback off value 467 may be a representation of the current load on thebase station 102.

The initial back off (IBO) information 466 may represent the minimumdelay 463 and/or the maximum delay 465 for the distribution (i.e., theminimum back off value and/or the maximum back off value). A userequipment (UE) 354 may select a random number between the minimum backoff value and the maximum back off value that indicates the amount ofdelay the user equipment (UE) 354 must wait before initiating a messagetransmission. The minimum back off value may be fixed at 0. The initialback off parameter may be set in SIB2 as part of the Access ClassBarring (ACB) information 460 or it can be sent via another systeminformation block (SIB) 346.

The overload control information 456 may also include random accesschannel (RACH) barring information 468. The current access class barring(ACB) mechanism can only be applied to user equipments (UEs) 354 inRRC_IDLE. If many user equipments (UEs) 354 are in RRC_CONNECTED in thecell, the base station 102 may want to control these user equipments(UEs) 354 to mitigate random access attempts initiated by the mediaaccess control (MAC) layer 232 of each user equipment (UE) 354.

The random access channel (RACH) barring information 468 may include arandom access channel (RACH) barring factor 469 and a random accesschannel (RACH) barring time 471. Both the random access channel (RACH)barring factor 469 and the random access channel (RACH) barring time 471may be provided to user equipments (UEs) 354 that have the specificaccess class 114. The media access control (MAC) layer 232 in each userequipment (UE) 354 may draw a random number “rand” uniformly distributedin the range 0<=rand<1. If “rand” is lower than the value of the randomaccess channel (RACH) barring factor 469, the media access control (MAC)layer 232 considers an initiation of random access procedure as notbarred. Otherwise, the media access control (MAC) layer 232 considersthe initiation of random access procedure as barred.

If the initiation of random access procedure is barred, the userequipment (UE) 354 may draw a random number and decide the time to waitaccording to the random access channel (RACH) barring time 471 beforereattempting the random access procedure. The random access channel(RACH) barring information 468 may be signaled to the user equipment(UE) 354 via a dedicated channel, a broadcast channel, a media accesscontrol (MAC) Control Element or the paging channel. The random accesschannel (RACH) barring mechanism can mitigate random access channel(RACH) attempts initiated by the media access control (MAC) layer 232 ineach user equipment (UE) 354. The use of the random access channel(RACH) barring mechanism may reduce random access channel (RACH)congestion by user equipments (UEs) 354 in RRC_IDLE and user equipments(UEs) in RRC_CONNECTED. Because the media access control (MAC) layer 232does not know whether the user equipment (UE) 354 is in RRC_IDLE orRRC_CONNECTED, random access channel (RACH) barring influences bothstates.

The overload control information may also include random access channel(RACH) resources information 470 for a specific access class. Specificrandom access channel (RACH) resources may be pertained to specific userequipments (UEs) 354.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of a method 500 for reducing congestion. Themethod 500 may be performed by a base station 102. The base station 102may detect 502 a potential overload of the network. For example, thebase station 102 may detect a large number of user equipments (UE) 302that can potentially overwhelm the physical random access channel(PRACH) resources of the base station 102.

The base station 102 may select 504 an access class 114 for which tochange overload control information 356. The specific access class 114may be selected such that changes in the overload control information356 will mitigate the congestion. For example, the specific access class114 may include a large group of machine type communication (MTC)devices 104 that respond to the same trigger and could potentially causecongestion. Multiple access classes 114 may also be selected.

Once the base station 102 has selected 504 an access class 114, the basestation 102 may adjust 506 the overload control information 356 for thespecific access class 114. Adjusting 506 the overload controlinformation 356 may include changing the access class barring indicator461, changing the access class barring factor 462, changing the accessclass barring time 464, changing the minimum delay 463 in the initialback off (IBO) information 466 or changing the maximum delay 465 in theinitial back off (IBO) information 466. The base station 102 may thentransmit 508 the adjusted overload control information 356 to thespecific access class 114.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a method 600 for reducing congestion usingnotification sent via a paging message 348. The method 600 may beperformed by a base station 102. The base station 102 may detect 602 apotential overload of the network. The base station 102 may then select604 an access class 114 for which to change overload control information356. As discussed above, the base station 102 may select 604 the accessclass 114 such that changes to the overload control information 356settings corresponding to the access class 114 will mitigate thepotential overload of the network.

The base station 102 may then adjust 606 the overload controlinformation 356 a for the specific access class 114 in the systeminformation (SI) message 340. The system information (SI) message 340may be transmitted a number of times with the same content within amodification period by the base station 102. However, a user equipment(UE) 354 that have the specific access class 114 may not check thesystem information (SI) message 340 during a modification period for thelatest overload control information 356 a. To account for this, the basestation 102 may send 608 a paging message 348 with an overload controlinformation change notification 358 to the user equipments (UEs) 354that have the specific access class 114.

In one configuration, the paging message 348 may be sent to all userequipments (UEs) 354 but may indicate that the paging message 348 isonly relevant for those user equipments (UEs) 354 that have the specificaccess class 114. The base station 102 may then broadcast 610 the systeminformation (SI) message 340 before the next modification periodboundary. In this way, the base station 102 may mitigate congestion bychanging the overload control information 356 a used by the userequipments (UEs) 354 that have the specific access class 114.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a method 700 for reducing congestion withouta paging message 348. The method 700 may be performed by a base station102. The base station 102 may detect 702 a potential overload of thenetwork. The base station 102 may then select 704 an access class 114for which to change overload control information 356 a. The base station102 may select 704 the access class 114 such that changes to theoverload control information 356 a settings corresponding to the accessclass 114 will mitigate the potential overload of the network.

The base station 102 may then adjust 606 the overload controlinformation 356 a for the specific access class 114 in the systeminformation (SI) message 340. In one configuration, the user equipments(UEs) 354 with a specific access class 114 may be required to alwaysmonitor overload control information 356 a in the system information(SI) message 340 prior to attempting to access the cell.

A user equipment (UE) 354 in IDLE_MODE that attempts to access the cell(i.e., start a random access procedure) may first attempt to receive theoverload control information 356 a in the system information (SI)message 340. This can ensure that the overload control information 356 ais up-to-date in the user equipment (UE) 354. However, this may causesome delays in the establishment of a radio resource control (RRC)connection or in the random access channel (RACH) process. Therefore,only specific user equipments (UEs) 354 (i.e., those user equipments(UEs) 354 that have the specific access class 114 or those userequipments (UEs) 354 that are specifically required to do so) may berequired to read all necessary system information block (SIB) 346 dataincluding overload control information 356 a before accessing the cell.

For example, a machine type communication (MTC) device 104 a that istime tolerant may be required to read the necessary system informationblock (SIB) 346 data including the overload control information 356 abefore the machine type communication (MTC) device 104 a can access thecell. But, a machine type communication (MTC) device 104 b that is timeintolerant may not be required to read the necessary system informationblock (SIB) 346 data including the overload control information 356 abefore the machine type communication (MTC) device 104 b can access thecell. In one configuration, the necessary system information block (SIB)346 data may include SIB2, which carries Access Class Barring (ACB)information 460.

A machine type communication (MTC) device 104 b that is time intolerantmay use the Access Class Barring (ABC) information 460 provided in SIB2while a machine type communication (MTC) device 104 a that is timetolerant may use the Access Class Barring (ACB) information 460 providedin a special system information block SIBx, which has longerperiodicity. SIBx may carry the parameters for machine typecommunication (MTC) devices 104. User equipments (UEs) 354 other thanmachine type communication (MTC) devices 104 may not be required tomonitor SIBx.

SIB2 has a short periodicity that is beneficial to reducing latency.However, SIB2 is an expensive resource and adding additional data toSIB2 may be difficult. Thus, it is foreseeable that Initial Back Off(IBO) information 466 may be carried in a system information block (SIB)346 other than SIB2. The special system information block SIBx has longperiodicity and is a low cost resource. Thus, SIBx may carry InitialBack Off (IBO) information 466, Access Class Barring (ACB) information460, random access channel (RACH) barring information 468 and specificrandom access channel (RACH) resources information 470 for machine typecommunication (MTC) devices 104 to facilitate the requirements of a timetolerant machine type communication (MTC) device 104 a.

The base station 102 may broadcast 708 the system information (SI)message 340 before the next modification period boundary. In this way,the base station 102 may mitigate congestion by changing the overloadcontrol information 356 a used by the user equipments (UEs) 354 thathave the specific access class 114.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of a method 800 for reducing congestion bysending overload control information 356 b in a paging message 348. Themethod 800 may be performed by a base station 102. The base station 102may detect 802 a potential overload of the network. The base station 102may then select 804 an access class 114 for which to change overloadcontrol information 356 b.

Once the access class 114 has been selected, the base station 102 mayadjust 806 the overload control information 356 b for the specificaccess class 114 in a paging message 348. The paging message 348 mayindicate that the overload control information 356 b is for those userequipments (UEs) 354 that have the specific access class 114. Userequipments (UEs) 354 of the same paging group, which is divided mymonitoring occasion, will read the paging message 348. Each userequipment (UE) 354 will only read the information in the paging message348 related to the user equipment (UE) 354. The base station 102 maythen send 808 the paging message 348 to the user equipments (UEs) 354that have the specific access class 114. The user equipments (UEs) 354that have the specific access class 114 may use the overload controlinformation 356 b in access procedures, thereby reducing the congestionof the base station 102.

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram of another method 900 for reducing congestion.The method 900 may be performed by a user equipment (UE) 354. The userequipment (UE) 354 may be a machine type communication (MTC) device 104or a wireless communication device 118. The user equipment (UE) 354 mayoperate 902 in idle mode. The user equipment (UE) 354 may obtain 903up-to-date overload control information 356.

The user equipment (UE) 354 may acquire and store system information(SI) based on normal procedures and/or additional procedures for theup-to-date overload control information 356 as discussed above inrelation to FIG. 3. This system information (SI) acquisition isperformed any time if required. The user equipment (UE) 354 may receiveand store the updated overload control information 356 via a pagingmessage 348, a system information (SI) message 340 or a systeminformation (SI) message 340 accompanied by an overload controlinformation change notification 358 in a paging message 348. The userequipment (UE) 354 may only receive and store updated overload controlinformation 356 if the user equipment (UE) 354 is part of the specificaccess class 114 during the radio resource control (RRC) connectionestablishment procedure. If the user equipment (UE) 354 is not part ofthe specific access class 114, the user equipment (UE) 354 may havealready received and stored the pertinent overload control information356 from the base station 102. In one configuration, the updatedoverload control information 356 may be stored during a modificationperiod.

The user equipment (UE) 354 may detect 904 a triggering event thatrequires the user equipment (UE) 354 to access the network. Examples oftriggering events include a change in pressure on an oil valve, a suddendrop in temperature, a change in heart rhythms for a pacemaker, etc.Triggering events may be different for each type of machine typecommunication (MTC) device 104. By triggering events, the user equipment(UE) 354 starts the radio resource control (RRC) connectionestablishment procedure. The user equipment (UE) 354 may then obtain 906Access Class Barring (ACB) information 460 from the up-to-date overloadcontrol information 356.

The user equipment (UE) 354 may determine 908 whether, for the accessclass of the user equipment (UE) 354, the corresponding bit in theaccess class barring indicator 361 ac-BarringForSpecialAC is set tozero. The access class barring indictor 361 ac-BarringForSpecialAC is abit strings as a bitmap for each access class. If the corresponding bitin the access class barring indicator 361 ac-BarringForSpecialAC is setto zero, the user equipment (UE) 354 considers 920 access to the cell asnot barred.

If the corresponding bit in the access class barring indicator 361ac-BarringForSpecialAC is set to one, the user equipment (UE) 354 maydraw 910 a first random number “randOne” uniformly distributed in therange 0<=randOne<1. If the random number “randOne” drawn is lower thanthe value indicated by the access class barring factor 462, the userequipment (UE) 354 considers 920 access to the cell as not barred. Ifthe random number “randOne” drawn is not lower than the value indicatedby the access class barring factor 462, the user equipment (UE) 354considers 914 access to the cell as barred.

If access to the cell is considered 914 as barred, the user equipment(UE) 354 may draw 916 a second random number “randTwo.” The secondrandom number “randTwo” may correspond to the access class barring time464. The user equipment (UE) 354 may wait 918 for a time periodcorresponding to the second random number “randTwo” and the access classbarring time 464. For example, the time period may equal(0.7+0.6*randTwo)*ac-Barring time. Once the time period has expired, theuser equipment (UE) 354 may return to obtaining 906 updated access classbarring (ACB) information from the stored overload control information356.

If the user equipment (UE) 354 has considered 920 access to the cell asnot barred, the user equipment (UE) 354 may obtain 922 an initial backoff value 467 from the up-to-date overload control information 356. Theuser equipment (UE) 354 may then apply 924 an initial back off based onthe initial back off value 467.

There are several different ways to apply 924 the initial back off basedon the initial back off value 467. In a first method, the initial backoff value 467 is applied to the radio resource control (RRC) layer 238.The radio resource control (RRC) layer 238 in the user equipment (UE)254 may decide the time to wait before initiating transmission of theRRCConnectionRequest message. Therefore, the initial back off value 467is used for the initiation of providing the RRCConnectionRequest messageto the lower layer. If the radio resource control (RRC) message isprovided to the lower layer after the back off time, a random accessprocedure may be initiated by the media access control (MAC) layer 232.The initial back off is thus applied 924 before a radio resource control(RRC) connection establishment and is not used for a user equipment (UE)354 in RRC_CONNECTED. Because this method is performed in the higherlayer, the larger value of initial back off can be applied.

In a second method, the initial back off value may be applied in themedia access control (MAC) layer 232. The media access control (MAC)layer 232 in the user equipment (UE) 254 may decide the time to wait toinitiate the random access procedure. The random access procedure isused for a scheduling request initiated by the media access control(MAC) itself. The random access procedure may be caused by a radioresource control (RRC) connection establishment by the user equipment(UE) 354 in RRC_IDLE or by the uplink data arrival in RRC_CONNECTED.

Specific user equipments (UEs) 354 (i.e., those user equipments (UEs)354 that have the specific access class 114) may be required to take aback off time to initiate the random access process and reattempt therandom access process while normal user equipments (UEs) 354 are onlyrequired to take a back off time to reattempt the random access process.The initial back off value 467 may be used for the initiation of randomaccess procedures and can be used for a user equipment (UE) 354regardless of the mode (i.e., it can be used in either RRC_IDLE mode orRRC_CONNECTED mode).

A back off time to reattempt the random access process may differentiatebetween normal user equipments (UEs) 354 and specific user equipments(UEs) 354. It can achieve the distribution of a back off time toreattempt the random access process as well as to initiate the randomaccess process. A back off value for specific user equipments (UEs) 354to reattempt the random access process may be the same value as theinitial back off value 467 or may be signaled by the base station 102.

Specific physical random access channel (PRACH) resources may bepertained to specific user equipments (UEs) 354 in the higher layer(i.e., the radio resource control (RRC) layer 238). The media accesscontrol (MAC) layer 232 may control the initial back off based onspecific physical random access channel (PRACH) resources rather thanbased on specific user equipments (UEs) 354. If the user equipment (UE)354 uses specific physical random access channel (PRACH) resources, theuser equipment (UE) 354 may take a back off time to initiate the randomaccess procedure and reattempt the random access process.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of a method 1000 for applying random accesschannel (RACH) barring. The method 1000 may be performed by a userequipment (UE) 354. The user equipment (UE) 354 may operate 1002 inconnected mode (i.e., RRC_CONNECTED) or in idle mode (i.e., RRC_IDLE).The user equipment (UE) 354 may attempt 1004 random access proceduresinitiated by the media access control (MAC) layer 232.

The user equipment (UE) 354 may then draw 1006 a first random number.The user equipment (UE) 354 may determine 1008 whether the first randomnumber is lower than the random access channel (RACH) barring factor469. As discussed above in relation to FIG. 4, the user equipment (UE)354 may receive the random access channel (RACH) barring factor 469 fromthe base station 102. If the first random number is lower than therandom access channel (RACH) barring factor 469, the user equipment (UE)354 may assume that the random access procedure is not barred and maycontinue 1010 random access procedures.

If the first random number is not lower than the random access channel(RACH) barring factor 469, the user equipment (UE) 354 may assume thatthe random access procedure is barred. The user equipment (UE) 354 maydraw 1012 a second random number. The user equipment (UE) 354 may thenwait 1014 for a time corresponding to the second random number and therandom access channel (RACH) barring time 471. As discussed above inrelation to FIG. 4, the user equipment (UE) 354 may receive the randomaccess channel (RACH) barring time 471 from the base station 102. Oncethe user equipment (UE) 354 has waited for the time, the user equipment(UE) 354 may again draw 1006 a first random number.

If the Access Class Barring (ACB) mechanism is implemented as randomaccess channel (RACH) barring, the initial back off (IBO) mechanism mayalso be implemented in the media access control (MAC) layer 232. Theuser equipment (UE) 354 may assume that the random access procedure isnot barred and may apply the initial back off and continue 1010 randomaccess procedures.

The schemes as mentioned above can be applied to specific userequipments (UEs) 354 (i.e., those user equipments (UEs) 354 that havethe specific access class 114). For example, the use of the Access ClassBarring Mechanism (ACB) and/or the Initial Back Off (IBO) mechanismand/or the random access channel (RACH) barring mechanism and/orenforcement of system information block (SIB) reading and/or pagingnotification may be predefined, decided based on the access class orsignaled bi the base station 120 or the network via the broadcastchannel, the dedicated channel or the paging channel.

FIG. 11 illustrates various components that may be utilized in a basestation 1102. The base station 1102 may be an access point, a Node B, aneNodeB, etc. The base station 1102 includes a processor 1103 thatcontrols operation of the base station 1102. The processor 1103 may alsobe referred to as a CPU. Memory 1105, which may include both read-onlymemory (ROM), random access memory (RAM) or any type of device that maystore information, provides instructions 1107 a and data 1109 a to theprocessor 1103. A portion of the memory 1105 may also includenon-volatile random access memory (NVRAM). Instructions 1107 b and data1109 b may also reside in the processor 1103. Instructions 1107 b loadedinto the processor 1103 may also include instructions 1107 a from memory1105 that were loaded for execution by the processor 1103. Theinstructions 1107 b may be executed by the processor 1103 to implementthe methods disclosed herein.

The base station 1102 may also include a housing that includes atransmitter 1111 and a receiver 1113 to allow transmission and receptionof data. The transmitter 1111 and receiver 1113 may be combined into atransceiver 1115. An antenna 1117 is attached to the housing andelectrically coupled to the transceiver 1115. Additional antennas mayalso be used.

The various components of the base station 1102 are coupled together bya bus system 1119 which may include a power bus, a control signal bus,and a status signal bus, in addition to a data bus. However, for thesake of clarity, the various buses are illustrated in FIG. 11 as the bussystem 1119. The base station 1102 may also include a digital signalprocessor (DSP) 1121 for use in processing signals. The base station1102 may further include a communications interface 1123 that providesuser access to the functions of the base station 1102. The base station1102 illustrated in FIG. 11 is a functional block diagram rather than alisting of specific components.

FIG. 12 illustrates various components that may be utilized in a userequipment (UE) 1254. The user equipment (UE) 1254 may include componentsthat are similar to the components discussed above in relation to thebase station 1102, including a processor 1203, memory 1205 that providesinstructions 1207 a and data 1209 a to the processor 1203, instructions1207 b and data 1209 b that may reside in the processor 1203, a housingthat contains a transmitter 1211 and a receiver 1213 (which may becombined into a transceiver 1215), an antenna 1217 electrically coupledto the transceiver 1215, a bus system 1219, a digital signal processor(DSP) 1221 for use in processing signals, a communications interface1223, and so forth.

As used herein, the term “determining” encompasses a wide variety ofactions and, therefore, “determining” can include calculating,computing, processing, deriving, investigating, looking up (e.g.,looking up in a table, a database or another data structure),ascertaining and the like. Also, “determining” can include receiving(e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in amemory) and the like. Also, “determining” can include resolving,selecting, choosing, establishing and the like.

The phrase “based on” does not mean “based only on,” unless expresslyspecified otherwise. In other words, the phrase “based on” describesboth “based only on” and “based at least on.”

The term “processor” should be interpreted broadly to encompass ageneral purpose processor, a central processing unit (CPU), amicroprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a controller, amicrocontroller, a state machine, and so forth. Under somecircumstances, a “processor” may refer to an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD), a fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA), etc. The term “processor” may refer to acombination of processing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and amicroprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or moremicroprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other suchconfiguration.

The term “memory” should be interpreted broadly to encompass anyelectronic component capable of storing electronic information. The termmemory may refer to various types of processor-readable media such asrandom access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), non-volatile randomaccess memory (NVRAM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable PROM(EEPROM), flash memory, magnetic or optical data storage, registers,etc. Memory is said to be in electronic communication with a processorif the processor can read information from and/or write information tothe memory. Memory may be integral to a processor and still be said tobe in electronic communication with the processor.

The terms “instructions” and “code” should be interpreted broadly toinclude any type of computer-readable statement(s). For example, theterms “instructions” and “code” may refer to one or more programs,routines, sub-routines, functions, procedures, etc. “Instructions” and“code” may comprise a single computer-readable statement or manycomputer-readable statements.

The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software,firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, thefunctions may be stored as one or more instructions on acomputer-readable medium. The term “computer-readable medium” refers toany available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way ofexample, and not limitation, a computer-readable medium may compriseRAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic diskstorage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that canbe used to carry or store desired program code in the form ofinstructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer.Disk and disc, as used herein, includes compact disc (CD), laser disc,optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray®disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discsreproduce data optically with lasers.

Software or instructions may also be transmitted over a transmissionmedium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website,server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable,twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologiessuch as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiberoptic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such asinfrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition oftransmission medium.

The methods disclosed herein comprise one or more steps or actions forachieving the described method. The method steps and/or actions may beinterchanged with one another without departing from the scope of theclaims. In other words, unless a specific order of steps or actions isrequired for proper operation of the method that is being described, theorder and/or use of specific steps and/or actions may be modifiedwithout departing from the scope of the claims.

It is to be understood that the claims are not limited to the preciseconfiguration and components illustrated above. Various modifications,changes and variations may be made in the arrangement, operation anddetails of the systems, methods, and apparatus described herein withoutdeparting from the scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method performed by a base station apparatus,comprising: transmitting a paging message with a notification ofchanging a first access barring parameter, wherein the first accessbarring parameter is included in a specific system information blockwhich is different from a System Information Block Type2 which includesa second access barring parameter, the paging message is also used as anotification of a change of system information including changing thesecond access barring parameter due to modification during a nextmodification period, the second access barring parameter in the SystemInformation Block Type2 is not changed within a present modificationperiod and is required to wait for the next modification period tochange, and the first access barring parameter in the specific systeminformation block is updateable during the present modification periodand is not required to wait for the next modification period to change;adjusting the first access barring parameter in the specific systeminformation block to bar access from specific user equipment; andtransmitting the adjusted first access barring parameter in the specificsystem information block.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the specificuser equipment comprises machine type communication devices and wirelesscommunication devices.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the basestation in an ENodeB.
 4. A base station configured to control networkcongestion, the apparatus comprising: a processor; a memory inelectronic communication with the processor; and instructions stored inthe memory, the instructions being executable to: transmit a pagingmessage with a notification of changing a first access barringparameter, wherein the first access barring parameter is included in aspecific system information block which is different from a SystemInformation Block Type2 which includes a second access barringparameter, the paging message is also used as a notification of a changeof system information including changing the second access barringparameter due to modification during a next modification period, thesecond access barring parameter in the System Information Block Type2 isnot changed within a present modification period and is required to waitfor the next modification period to change, and the first access barringparameter in the specific system information block is updateable duringthe present modification period and is not required to wait for the nextmodification period to change; adjust the first access barring parameterin the specific system information block to bar access from specificuser equipment; and transmit the adjusted first access barring parameterin the specific system information block.
 5. The base station of claim4, wherein the specific user equipment comprises machine typecommunication devices and wireless communication devices.
 6. The basestation of claim 4, wherein the base station in an ENodeB.
 7. A methodwhich controls network congestion, wherein the method is performed by auser equipment, the method comprising: obtaining a paging message with anotification of changing a first access barring parameter, wherein thefirst access barring parameter is included in a specific systeminformation block which is different from a System Information BlockType2 which includes a second access barring parameter, the pagingmessage is also used as a notification of a change of system informationincluding changing the second access barring parameter due tomodification during a next modification period, the second accessbarring parameter in the System Information Block Type2 is not changedwithin a present modification period and is required to wait for thenext modification period to change, and the first access barringparameter in the specific system information block is updateable duringthe present modification period and is not required to wait for the nextmodification period to change; and obtaining the first access barringparameter in the specific system information block to bar access fromspecific user equipment of the specific system information block.
 8. Themethod of claim 7, wherein the user equipment is a machine typecommunication device.
 9. The method of claim 7, wherein the userequipment is a wireless communication device.
 10. The method of claim 7,wherein the user equipment includes an access class.
 11. An apparatusconfigured to control network congestion, the apparatus comprising: aprocessor; a memory in electronic communication with the processor; andinstructions stored in the memory, the instructions being executable to:obtain a paging message with a notification of changing a first accessbarring parameter, wherein the first access barring parameter isincluded in a specific system information block which is different froma System Information Block Type2 which includes a second access barringparameter, the paging message is also used as a notification of a changeof system information including changing the second access barringparameter due to modification during a next modification period, thesecond access barring parameter in the System Information Block Type2 isnot changed within a present modification period and is required to waitfor the next modification period to change, and the first access barringparameter in the specific system information block is updateable duringthe present modification period and is not required to wait for the nextmodification period to change; and obtain the first access barringparameter in a specific system information block to bar access fromspecific user equipment of the specific system information block. 12.The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the user equipment is a machine typecommunication device.
 13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the userequipment is a wireless communication device.
 14. The apparatus of claim11, wherein the user equipment includes an access class.